ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Following the release of a propaganda video by the Islamic State saying it would capture the sacred Shiite cities of Najaf and Karbala and bomb Shiite shrines inside the two cities, one of the most influential Shiite religious and political figures in Iraq, Muqtada al-Sadr, has threatened the Islamic State in kind.
“If you touch our sacred shrines and cities, we will make Iraq full of your grimy bodies,” Sadr said in a statement.
“Those who claim they would attack our cities, they must expect a very tough battle,” he added.
Sadr called on Iraqi forces to take his statements seriously and to protect Shiite holy places from ISIS militants. Al-Sadr's Mahdi Army often battled with US forces between 2003 and 2011.
Hashd al-Shaabi Shiite militants have formed a force of an estimated 1,500 in Karbala and Najaf to protect the cities from ISIS.
On May 15 ISIS seized control of Ramadi, sending Iraqi forces racing out of the city in a major loss despite the support of US-led airstrikes targeting the extremists.
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